The e-mitra kiosks launched in 2011 by the state government allow villagers to access government services such as licences and passport services.AHMEDABAD: The Rajasthan government has joined hands with business-to-business (B2B) ecommerce firm Applicate IT Solutions to enable 35,000 e-mitra kiosks in the state for traders and retailers to procure products directly from manufacturers.

The e-mitra kiosks launched in 2011 by the state government allow villagers to access government services such as licences and passport services. The kiosks are usually installed and run at shops or stores and in return traders earn a certain percentage as commission on the government fees paid by the users.

As per the agreement entered between Rajasthan government’s RajCOMP Info Services (RISL) and Bengaluru-based Applicate IT Solutions, ‘Trade GINI’, a proprietary platform of the company will be added to the e-mitra kiosks that will enable traders and retailers in towns, cities and villages to access products directly from the manufacturers and at best rates.

“Out of the 35,000 plus kiosks, nearly 18,000 are located in smaller villages in Rajasthan and now they could access FMCG or any other products via these kiosks,” said Ranjeet Kumar, cofounder of Applicate IT Solutions.

Kumar said the agreement has two main purposes. First, to provide product access to people even at village level, and second, to boost sustainability of shop or store owners, since traders and retailers will be able to source products directly from the manufactures.

The ecommerce boom in India is growing at a faster pace in tier-II and tier-III cities and the ambition to use ecommerce is further percolating to deep rural areas, Kumar said. However, accessibility is still a concern, he said, even as there is demand for products in such regions. “We are just addressing the demand and in the process providing sustainability to village traders and retailers,” he said.